Friday Links, Wave the Flag Style
Happy Friday (finally) Cougs. This week, wow, it's been a grind for yours truly, but the end is finally here. Lots of links and such to get to, so let's get started.
So how many of you remember our old friend Hooty around these parts? He used to blog around here a few years back, and filled a really good role for us. He's been at a few of our tailgates and he'll always be a wonderful friend of the blog. Anyway, I stumbled upon something from a Facebook posting, and believe it or not, HOOTY WAS PICKED FOR THE WAVETHEFLAG.ORG CAMPAIGN! And yes, that's his mug on a billboard in Spokane. My first thought was I guess he answered the ad for "Wanted: grumpy ex-offensive lineman to complain about everything"??? But in all seriousness, Hooty has a tremendous story as to why he waves the flag, and I encourage each and every one of you to check out this quick video. Great work Hoot, and I look forward to seeing you again soon.
Moving on....
The Cougs practiced again yesterday, and they basically scrimmaged for most of it. It sounds like it was, well, OK I guess, but nothing spectacular. Christian Caple has you covered on pretty much everything, so check that out here. Gabe Marks had a big day though, with a 70-yard TD reception as he bobbed, weaved and juked his way through the WSU D. In fact Cougcenter has an animated GIF up of some of his moves, and you can see it by clicking here (nice work Cougcenter).
There's that name again - Gabe Marks. If you've been paying much attention this fall camp, it's that name you just keep hearing about. Sprinkling him in with the rest of the depth at WR, and yeah, it's pretty easy to get excited about what's to come from that passing offense.
If you recall, Marks was an SMU commit, but then wavered during the whole June-Jones-to-ASU fiasco that never ended up happening. Leach and company jumped in, and by mid-January, Marks was a Coug. There is a really good read on Marks from a couple of days ago in the Moscow-Pullman Daily News, which you can see here, and it touches on not only how impressive he has been this fall, but how easy things seem to come to him thus far. We'll see how it all settles in by the opener, but I think it's pretty clear by now that we're going to keep hearing his name during the regular season as well. Exciting stuff!
Next up, Howie Stalwick weighs in on the defense. It's a good read with quotes from various defensive players, and it's worth a look. It's funny, but the D, you just don't hear a lot of chatter about it. I guess the only thing we really do hear is that they are 1) young, 2) thin, and 3) we better score a LOT of points this year if we want to go bowling! Sound familiar?
Finally, and speaking of defensive players, we missed this the other day but Nolan Washington hopped on the KJR airwaves with Ian Furness. Always a great interview, Washington speaks openly and honestly about the Paul Wulff regime, and also the excitement over playing for Mike Leach, how hard they have busted their butts in that sand pit, and how impressed they all are by Gabe Marks! Check it out here (note - I tried to embed it, but for some reason it didn't work, but hit the link for the interview).
That's it for now. Enjoy your Friday, and of course, GO COUGS!
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I really like the article about Gabe Marks. With him and Wilson we are going to shred defenses. Which is good because our delfense is going to give up like 30pts a game...probably.....maybe? Dunno.
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Don't be at all surprised if this defense shows some real teeth this year. We all know it's thin, but there is a "quiet determination" known as a huge chip on their collective sholder. They are FAST, and I think they are going to be sneaky good. Baring injuries I think 30 points a game is a bit too high. I'm not predicting shut-outs, but there will be some very surprised offenses this year when the Cougs come to play.
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After reading Howie's article with Tuel's quote I have to agree with him. At the scrimmage last Saturday I was most impressed with the overall team speed. We haven't had this much speed since the Rose Bowl days or even before. I truly think the D will surprise a lot of teams this year.
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I can understand about the long week statement. I, a recent college grad, just got a big boy job and this marks the end of my first week o nthe job. What a rush!
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Nice work, Sean. A couple of things:
First and foremost, there is no Cougar out there who deserves to Wave the Flag more than Hooty and his dear mom. Tremendous Cougs, and when you factor in all the work and advocacy for the Mike Utley Foundation, well, its a no brainer. Congrats, Brother Hooty--we're proud of you!!!!
Second: The interview with Marks and Simmons was simply terrific. You can really get a sense about how this group is coming together.
Lets just keep those fingers crossed about injury..this team is pretty close to turning some major heads this year..
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@Sutra Definitely well deserved! That was such a great video and totally helps get the weekend started on a high note.
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@Sutra Seriously proud of what he had to say on that video, and couldn't agree more - he DESERVES to wave the flag!
